About The South
by once a whore
Summary: Ginny decides to attend University in the States. This is a story of her struggle to find out who she is without her family towering over her, the insanity of living with an apartment full of girls, and hiding her magical ability. Awesome, right?
1. On My Own

About The South

By: once a whore

Chapter One: On My Own

Author's Note: To add in current stuff like Facebook (my lifeline), I'm changing the years. The year is the 2006-2007 school year. Sorry for any of you who are finicky about that.

Disclaimer: Any references to music, musicals, Harry Potter, books, movie, etc belong to those have claimed it theirs (i.e. JK Rowling owns Harry Potter). Okay, thanks.

Synopsis: After Hogwarts and recovering from the war, Ginny decides to attend university in the States. She wants to get her nursing degree and become the Muggle equivalent of a Healer's assistant. This is a story of her struggle to find out who she is without her family towering over her, the insanity of living with an apartment full of girls, and hiding her magical ability.

* * *

(Wednesday, early afternoon)

Ginny Weasley, standing at five feet five inches with fiery red hair, brown eyes, and freckles sprinkled everywhere, looked at her stripped bed and empty desk and walls. She took a deep breath and thought, 'This is it. By tomorrow night or something, I'll be living alone in the States with strangers.' She really had no idea what her travel itinerary was like. Harry and Hermione had helped her with finding flights and miscellaneous Muggle items such as this thing called a legtop…no, a laptop? Yes, a laptop. Apparently it's an essential for university students.

"GINEVRA WEASLEY!" screamed a voice from two floors below her. Ginny rolled her eyes. Rather than screaming back, she took one last look at her room – a place she wouldn't see until the Christmas holiday – and closed the door. On her way down the stairs she ran into George.

"Are you coming to see me off at the airport?" she asked.

George laughed, "Of course." He ruffled her messy hair and shooed her downstairs. Ever since Fred was killed in the Battle at Hogwarts, George has still been outgoing and continued to keep inventing things for the shop, but a little more somber.

Ginny made it down to the kitchen where her mother was making a quick lunch for the household before they all piled into the car her father received from the Ministry and drove to London Heathrow Airport to see her off.

"So Gin, you know who this girl you're living with?" said George, bouncing down the stairs.

The kitchen full of her family, Harry, and Hermione looked at her. Ginny shrugged, "Actually, I'm living with three other girls in an apartment off-campus. I don't know much about them, though. The school wasn't specific and they never responded to my e-mail."

"Gin, do you even know how to use e-mail properly?" Harry laughed.

"Oh, bugger off!" Ginny said, smacking Harry's shoulder. After being scolded for language, Ginny continued, "The girls who I'm apparently living with are Kimber Brennan from New Orleans, Louisiana, Remy Jackson from Rochester, New York, and Miley George from Toronto, Canada."

"Well, have you Facebooked any of them?" Harry asked. Hermione laughed and everyone else gave him a blank stare.

"Uh, no. I don't even know that means. Look, can we just go, please?" Ginny asked, giving her mother begging eyes.

"Alright everyone! Get in the car, we have quite a ride ahead of us," Mrs. Weasley said, shooing everyone to get their belongings.

The car ride was eventful, to say the least. George and Ron were arguing about who the hottest member of the Harpies was, Harry was explaining Facebook to Mr. Weasley, Hermione was calmly reading a Muggle romance novel, and Mrs. Weasley was lecturing Ginny on being on her best behavior and not to get into any trouble with magical use.

"George, you are so blind if you can't see how gorgeous Melanie Bergdorf is compared to that toad Chanel Weiss…"

"…It's for Muggle networking purposes…"

"_Sigh_."

"You _will_ be getting a letter from the Minister himself if there is any hint of magical use around Muggles…"

&&&&

(Thursday, afternoon)

Ginny Weasley was finally alone in this big, bad world – reality, some people called it. She looked around for a man with a sign as soon as she stepped out past security in Tallahassee, Florida. She shifted the weight of her duffle bag from her right shoulder to her left shoulder. For the first couple of days, she only brought her essentials, as Ron, George, and Harry were bringing her other belongings when the weekend began.

Ginny took in the sight before her: hustle and bustle of men, women, and children trying to catch taxicabs, drivers, and flights. Ginny walked past a bunch of people in professional-looking suits holding cards with names. She didn't see hers though.

"Miss Weasley?" asked a low Southern drawl.

Ginny turned around to face an older man with graying blond hair, surprised, "Yeah, are you the guy who's taking me to my apartment?"

"Yes, miss. Would you like me to take your bag?" he asked, pocketing what looked like a picture. She assumed Harry, who set up her arrival plans, sent an image to the company incase she got lost in times like these.

"Uh, no thanks, I've got it. But seriously, thanks."

The man, who introduced himself as Thomas, led her to a black SUV and opened the door for her. She murmured a quick 'Thank you' before entering the car.

Most of the ride was silent, other than polite talk about her flight. Ginny searched her duffle for the secret present Harry had given her before she left.

_"Hey Gin," Harry said, pulling her away from the group._

_"Yeah, Harry?"_

_"I wanted to give you something for immediate contact, since using owls to send letters might be suspicious, you know?" Harry said with a chuckle. He took out a wrapped box and handed it to her. "I've already helped with personalized settings, but I'm sure your roommates will teach you how to use it to personalize yourself."_

_"What is it?" Ginny asked, not wanting to open it with her family five yards from her._

_"A surprise," he said, giving her a kiss on the cheek._

"Ah! 2039 North Meridian Road!" said Thomas from the front of the car. Ginny looked up from the wrapped gift at what she knew as LondonTown, an apartment complex just about a mile from campus. It looked just like the picture from the browser-thing Hermione helped her use to find a place to live. She honestly just chose the place because of the name. "Now, what is your apartment number?" she was asked.

"Err, 27A, I believe," she replied.

They pulled up to the apartments labeled 'A' and Ginny proceeded to get out of the car with her duffle and present in tow. She thanked Thomas once again and watched him drive away. Turning around, she figured that since the apartment number began with a '2,' that she was on the second floor. She walked up a slightly hidden stairwell to see 23A right at the top of the stairs. Going with her gut, she turned left off of the stairs and sure enough, a few doors down there it was, 27A. Ginny took a deep breath and knocked on the door, kicking herself for forgetting to pick up her room key.

"Jesus Christ, Mom, I got it!" screamed a voice from inside. The door swung open to reveal a slim, averaged-height girl with tan skin, long brown hair and blue eyes.

"Hi, I'm Ginny, one of your roommates, I guess."

"Kimber. Come in before the sun blinds me," the girl replied. Ginny turned around and saw that the sun was starting to set facing their side of the apartment complex.

Kimber closed the door behind Ginny. "Is that all you brought?" Kimber asked, looking at Ginny's duffle and laptop case.

"Yeah, a couple of my brothers are coming this weekend with the rest of my stuff."

"Oh, fun. So you're the international student?" Kimber asked.

"Yeah, I guess so – who's that?" Ginny asked, pointing to a dark blond haired, blue eyed child, peeking out into the living room from what appeared to be the hallway.

"Oh, that's my son. Don't worry; he's just helping me move in, then his father is picking him up. Christopher, aren't you supposed to be helping Charlotte?" she snapped at her son.

"He can't be younger than six years old though –" Ginny started.

"Long story. Maybe I'll tell you one day. Now, before you choose your room, are you a neat freak?" Kimber asked.

"Pretty much, yeah. I have six brothers, so someone has to be clean," Ginny replied.

"Sweet. Would you like to be my roommate?" Kimber asked.

Ginny blinked, surprised at her bluntness, "Sure." Ginny followed Kimber further into the apartment. The first room Ginny noticed when she walked in was the carpeted living room and tiled dining room. Extending out of the dining room appeared to be a patio. To her right was a small hallway that held one of the bedrooms and bathrooms. To her left was a less-opened copycat of what she viewed on her right. The kitchen seemed to come off of the dining area. Past the kitchen was a laundry room, Kimber had said. But the utilities weren't there.

After the brief tour, Kimber shooed Ginny to the bedroom that was attached to the shorter hallway.

"The room seemed bigger," Kimber said with a chuckle. Ginny had to agree.

The beds were parallel to each other, with a large window between them. Kimber's bed was already made with a brightly colored comforter and pillowcases. She jumped on the bed and attacked her son with tickles.

"Bloody hell," Ginny murmured, looking at the undressed bed.

"Hmm…?" Kimber asked, looking up.

"I forgot a pillow and comforter. Like, I have a blanket, but nothing else for now," Ginny replied, mentally smacking herself.

"Well, I have an extra pillow if you want…" Kimber said, trailing off as a woman who looked like an older version of Kimber walked in.

"Mom, this is Ginny, my roommate. Ginny, this is my mother, Charlotte," Kimber said, aimlessly throwing the introduction around with a loose palm.

"Pleased to meet you, darlin'," said Charlotte with a sweet sounding southern drawl.

"Same here," Ginny replied before turning to her duffle bag to unpack her toiletries and clothes. Packed safely between her clothes were pictures of her family and friends. They were charmed so that Muggles couldn't see the pictures move, but Ginny could.

She placed the frames gently on her bed before refolding her clothes and turning to look for drawers to put them in. She noticed Kimber's was in the corner near the closet.

"Yours is in the closet," Kimber said, without looking up from what she was doing.

Ginny turned around and walked to the closet. Sure enough, there was a chest of drawers on one side of the closet. Too lazy to move the furniture around, Ginny proceeded to empty the clothes from her duffle bag into the drawers.

&&&&&

Around eight o'clock that evening, Ginny and Kimber were chatting with their newest roommate arrival, Remy Jackson. Miley George had yet to show up. The three girls were sitting on the living room couch, getting to know one another over Coca Cola's with lime. Kimber's mother was long gone, but her son was still waiting to be picked up. He had already fallen asleep from the day's activities.

Ginny, exhausted from the time difference and helping Kimber and Remy unpack, remembered Harry's gift. She ran up from her spot on the couch to her room. She searched her desk drawers for the present until she found it. Ginny walked back into the living room with the present in hand.

"What's that?" Remy asked.

"A present from a friend. I forgot about it until now," Ginny replied, fingering with the crease in the wrapping paper.

"Well open it before I do!" Remy said.

Ginny tore the paper open until it revealed a box with one of those Muggle mobile phones on it. She gasped, along with her roommates.

"You have a pretty sweet friend," Remy said.

"Oh look, a note!" Kimber said, grabbing it to read out loud before Ginny could react, "_Dearest Ginny, _- that's sweet – _I figured you'd want this to keep in touch with your family (and me and Hermione) _– that's a silly name, I love it – _I haven't activated yet, so you'll have to go to a __T-Mobile__ store in the States to do that. I'm sure your roommates wil__l be able to help you with that and programming numbers and information into your phone._

"_Also, I programmed mine, Ron's, Hermione's__ and George's mobile numbers. I'm not sure if any of your other brothers have mobiles or not. I know your mum is technology illiterate, like yourself.__ Heh__, I'll pay for that later won't I? Don't worry about the bill for now, I promise _– can he pay for my bill as well? – _You're taken care of. Yes, you have an international calling plan._

_"I wish you the best of luck at University, and I'll see you this weekend with Ron, Hermione, and George. I can't wait._

_"All my love, Harry._" Kimber finished and looked up at Ginny's surprised face.

"That is the sweetest thing ever! Is he your boyfriend?" Remy asked.

"Err, I'm not sure. We dated and broke up. But we're still incredibly friendly with each other, you know?" Ginny said.

"It's really cute," Kimber said, as there was a loud knock on the door, "Ugh, finally!" she got up to answer the door.

"Took you long enough," Kimber said to the man at the door. Ginny strained her neck to see who it was, as if she knew him.

"Sorry, my, err, _plane_ got in late," he replied. Ginny blinked and wondered why this man had a familiar English accent.

"Sure. Well, come in. You're letting all of the mosquitoes in," Kimber said, stepping aside to let him in.

Ginny gasped when he stepped in from out of Kimber's shadow.

"Weasley?!" he asked in a surprised voice.

Ginny found herself having a staring and gaping contest with Draco Malfoy.

* * *

End Note: All right, first chapter of my first story. I'm sure I went comma crazy, as I usually do in my writing. I anticipate the second chapter to be posted shortly. I'm sure you saw that coming, but if not. Cool! I hope this gets better. And maybe longer! ) Spring Break is coming up so I'll get to have LOADS of writing time.

I realized during editing I haven't said where Ginny is going to school. Clearly it's in the States, but you'll find out soon enough (as in, Chapter 2). I know I basically made her trip 24 hours, but let's just imagine there were long lay overs or something. If you couldn't tell already, this is A-fucking-U. Get over it, please'kaythanks. Oh, LondonTown apartments and their address is a real place. I did a little research, you should be proud of me. I made up the apartment number. And the description of the apartment is called 'The Wimbledon.' I'd like to live there if I get accepted to future-mentioned school when apply for grad school. Anyways, ...

**Reviews & suggestions**** are welcome!**

**Flames, not so much. **

**I'd much rather receive constructive criticism. **


	2. If That's What It Takes

About The South

By: once a whore

Chapter Two: If That's What It Takes

Author's Note: I'm sure you're dying to know what's going to happen next. I am too! I honestly write in order. I kind of have mild obsessive-compulsive disorder. I'm so cool.

ALSO, this story is half "canon" and half AU. I make up stuff that happened, and some stuff actually did happen. Like Fred's death. Which made me bawl for two hours after I read that this past summer. Basically.

AND ALSO, I know it seems like Ginny and Kimber are "lyke t0tally b.F.f.z" but I'm loosely basing their friendship on mine and my roommate's my first year of college; me, being the insane, in-your-face personality, and my roommate, being shy and kind of a wallflower who eventually grows some balls. But this isn't "Mary Jane" or whatever that means. Kimber is NOT me – Just some similarities in the personality to make the story more interesting. But seriously, what does Mary Jane mean? Marijuana? KIDDING!

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1, kthnx.

* * *

(Thursday, nighttime)

"Uh, hi. Do you two like, know each other or something?" Kimber asked, trying to break the tension and looks Draco and Ginny were giving each other.

"How do you know her?" Draco demanded to Kimber.

"Sure, be an arse, Malfoy," Ginny said with a glare, "We went to, err, school together."

"You mean – you are too?! What the balls? Why doesn't anyone tell me anything?" Kimber asked, mainly to herself.

"You know?" Ginny asked.

"Hell fucking yes I know, I am too," Kimber replied, "Weasley, I should've known!"

"Are you all like, in a cult or something?" Remy asked, looking a little frightened.

Ginny and Kimber laughed. Draco didn't look too amused. "No. We all come from notable English ancestry, basically," Kimber explained quickly to Remy. Ginny and Draco nodded with shocked looks at Kimber's quick response.

"Oh. Well, I'll let you guys have a reunion or something. I need to wash up anyways," Remy said, heading for her room.

"So what the bloody hell are you doing here, Weasley?" Draco demanded.

"Oh that's nice, Malfoy. In case you didn't notice, I live here. What are you doing here?" Ginny asked.

"Alright, so before World War Three starts, I'll explain and threaten. One: ya'll clearly have problems. Two: Draco, she's my roommate. Get over it. You'll be seeing her quite a bit if you want to stay in your son's life. Three: Ginny, he's Christopher's father. Long story, I told you I'd tell you later. And this isn't later. Can ya'll just be civil around the sleeping seven year old that's present? Thanks."

Ginny and Draco both nodded then resumed to glaring at each other. Ginny broke the glare and asked Kimber, "So, how old are you exactly to have a seven year old?"

Kimber snorted, "I'm 20. Damn, imagine if I was a more traditional 18-year old student with a seven year old. That's even more wrong." The girls let out a little, awkward laugh.

"So you went to Hogwarts?" Kimber asked Ginny excitedly, changing the subject.

"Yeah. I never actually finished my education. I fought in the War –"

"No way! Do you know Harry Potter? " Kimber asked.

"Kim, not every English witch you know knows Harry Potter," Draco said.

"Oh my God! The…Harry that sent you the cell phone. Now way. Please tell me that was Harry Potter. I'd absolutely die!" Kimber chatted on, as Ginny watched in wonder. How could someone talk so fast and much without taking a breath?

"How do you breathe, Kim?" Draco asked.

"Oh hush, Draco. Hey, it's like, eight-thirty. Christopher needs to get to a real bed. You're gonna bring him over on Saturday, right?" Kimber asked.

"Of course m'dear. And I know, I'm not going to apparate with him, he's not going to go over three feet on his broom, and he will not be around any dangerous potions or chemicals," Draco recited, as if he had to say it every time this exchange took place.

"I'm glad I don't have to remind you. I'll be right back to get his over night bag." Kimber left the living room for the girls' bedroom, leaving Ginny and Draco in a very awkward position – alone in silence.

"So, uh, sorry for being a bitch," Ginny said, breaking the silence.

"Yeah, you were right, Weasley, I was kind of being an arse," Draco said.

"Kind of?" Ginny questioned.

"Don't push it, Weasley," Draco said, before picking up the sleeping child from a random plush chair.

"Aww, you two are being civil. Momma's so proud," Kimber said, returning with a child-sized duffle bag. She helped Draco put it over his shoulder before opening the door for him.

"Oh Draco," Kimber called to his retreating back in a sickly sweet voice, "Call me Kim ever again, and you will not have balls."

&&&&

(Friday, morning)

"Good morning, sunshine," Kimber sang out to Ginny, opening the drapes, letting the sun beam through.

"Go die," Ginny murmured from her pillow.

"Sorry, I didn't catch that, what'd you say? Listen, I'm running to Starbucks, do you want anything?" Kimber asked.

Ginny turned to face Kimber. She was already showered, dressed, and made up for the day. She glanced at the digital clock on her desk – 8:45am. "What is Starbucks?" Ginny asked, cursing the hour.

"Okay. Isn't it like, almost noon your time? You can't already be accustomed to Florida time. And you don't know what Starbucks is?! Oh, the conspiracy. It's basically coffee, tea, and some tasty treats," Kimber replied, once again at warp speed.

"Earl Grey Tea, please. Now leave me alone," Ginny said, turning back to the warmth of her previous position. She heard Kimber leave the room and bang on Remy's door.

"Leave me the fuck alone, Kimber!" Ginny heard Remy scream.

"I'm making a Starbucks trip!" Kimber sang out.

"Café Latte, you bitch," Remy yelled back.

"Farewell, my darling roommates," Kimber yelled, probably from the living room, Ginny assumed. She heard the door slam shut and groaned. She couldn't go back to sleep. Over the summer, Ginny slept in until noon or whenever her mother would wake her up. Sighing, she figured she'd get ready for the day.

Picking up her towel and toiletries, Ginny headed towards the bathroom she shared with Kimber. Standing in the steamed chamber, Ginny suddenly remembered that Harry, Hermione, Ron, and George were coming sometime in the afternoon.

Ginny emerged from the bedroom fully dressed, her red hair hanging in loose waves down her back. Kimber was back and three large cups of coffee were sitting on the kitchen counter. On the tops in permanent marker read "G," "R," and "K."

"Thanks, Kimber," Ginny said, grabbing the cup with the "G" top.

"No problemo. Has Remy woken up yet?" she asked.

"I smell coffee," Remy said, dragging her feet as she walked into the kitchen.

"Oh hush, I just bought you coffee," Kimber said.

"I'll be nicer in about twenty minutes," Remy said, taking a large gulp of her coffee.

"So what are ya'll doing today?" Kimber asked, as they enjoyed their preferred beverages.

"Going back to bed after I shower," Remy said.

"Two of my brothers and two of my friends are bringing a bunch of my stuff from home. Like, more of my clothes, my comforter, random necessities, et cetra," Ginny said. Remembering her inactivated phone, Ginny wondered how she was going to activate it. "Do either of you have cars here?"

"Yeah. How else do you think I got to Starbucks?" Kimber replied.

"Can you take me to get my mobile phone activated?" Ginny asked.

"Sure. I have nothing to do. I'll look it up the closest T-Mobile store online in a few," Kimber said, finishing the last of her coffee.

"You're done with that already?" Remy asked in surprise.

"Sure am. I'm addicted to caffeine, basically. Don't be surprised if you see me with a Red Bull in a couple of hours," Kimber said, before skipping out of the kitchen.

"That girl has too much energy," Remy said to Ginny. They both laughed.

"I heard that!" Kimber said from her bedroom. She came back with a black laptop that had a white lit up apple on it.

"What does the apple-thing mean?" Ginny asked.

"It's a MacBook…? Oh right, you're, and I quote, '_Technology illiterate_,'" Kimber said, joking around. "Apple is a brand. It makes the world spin 'round. End of story."

"Alriiiiight, what are you doing with it?" Ginny asked.

"Finding the closest T-Mobile of course!" Kimber said as if it was obvious. A few clicks and types later, Kimber let out an 'aha!' and furiously began writing down directions on a scrap of paper. "Ready to go?"

Ginny and Remy blinked at her. "Listen. You need to find out when your brother's, ahem, _flight_, is coming in and you can't do that without a cellular. So lets make like a whore and shimmy out of here," Kimber said.

Remy let out a hearty laugh, "Alright, you _whores_, I'm taking a shower and going back to bed. See you later." And with that, she walked out of the kitchen.

"Are you ready now?" Kimber asked, impatiently.

Ginny shrugged, "Sure, let me get my bag."

Kimber followed her into their bedroom, "Bag? You mean purse?"

Ginny waved her hand aimlessly, "Same thing. Ready, slow poke?" Ginny grabbed her bag, turning around to see Kimber adding another layer of mascara on her eyelashes.

"I've been ready and caffeinated since 8:45am, m'dear," Kimber replied. She grabbed her car keys from her desk and danced out of the room, Ginny following closely behind, with the box that held her new mobile in tow.

&&&&

"I still can't believe this guy got you a Sidekick!" Kimber exclaimed as they walked out of the T-Mobile store.

"I don't understand this damn thing," Ginny said, fumbling as she attempted to flip phone's screen. Kimber laughed and helped her flip the screen.

"If only I didn't have a Verizon plan," Kimber mumbled as they walked to her car. "Oh, I should add my cell number!" She quickly maneuvered her phone number into Ginny's, murmuring, "504-555-2306…" She hit the 'Send' button to get Ginny's number. Fascinated, Ginny watched as her new mobile number showed up on Kimber's, reading "850-555-5672."

"That is so cool!" Ginny exclaimed.

"You've been missing out on a lot," Kimber replied, as she backed out of her parking space. To make conversation, Kimber asked, "So what's your major here? And how the hell did you get your Hogwarts grades transferred to the equivalent of Muggle high school?"

Ginny took a breath before replying, "Well, there's a small magical community at FSU, and so it was set up between my Hogwarts Headmistress and the wizarding Admissions counselor. And I'm a nursing major. What about you?"

"Well, currently I'm a Criminal Justice major, but I want to go to law school and be a sex-crimes prosecutor. Have you seen the television show _Law & Order: SVU_?" Ginny shook her head negatively. "Well, I want to do what the Assistant District Attorney on the show does, basically. But I've wanted to be one since before I saw the show – well, at least I've wanted to go to law school since before I started even watching T.V."

"What exactly would you do?"

"Prosecute rapists, pedophiles, and such. It's kind of ironic…" Kimber said, trailing off.

"Did he rape you?" Ginny asked, shocked.

"Not by choice. But anyways, wanna go out to lunch?" Kimber changed the subject rather quickly. "We can chit-chat then. Where do you want to go?"

"I should see when my brothers are coming. Hold on," Ginny said, fumbling with her phone once again. Suddenly, a high-pitched tone came out of the device. Ginny screamed and dropped it to the floor of the car. "How do I make it stop?" Ginny asked, almost afraid to touch it.

"Hit the green button, put it up to your ear, and say 'Hello?'" Kimber said. Ginny followed her instructions.

"Hello?" Ginny answered.

"Oh good! You got your mobile activated!" Ginny heard Harry's voice come through the other side of her phone.

"Apparently so," Ginny replied.

"Is now a good and safe time to come?" Harry asked.

"Give us, hold on a second," Ginny turned to Kimber, "What time will be back?" Kimber replied. "Give us ten minutes."

"Is it okay with your roommate there? Is she leaving to go somewhere else after she drops you off?" Harry asked.

"My roommate, Kimber, who I'm with now, is actually a witch. Don't worry. We'll just have to see what Remy is up to and if we can get her out of the way."

"Okay. Just call me back when you're ready to have us come with your stuff," Harry said before Ginny heard the line go dead.

"So we have to get Remy out of the apartment?" Kimber asked.

"Yeah."

"I'll ask her if she got her textbooks yet, and if not, we'll go to the campus bookstore. If she has, I'll ask if she'd like to accompany me to Barnes."

"Barnes?" Ginny asked.

"Barnes and Noble. It's a bookstore, music store, and coffee shop all in one," Kimber said, "It's basically my haven. Books and coffee within five feet of each other!"

Ginny laughed. She noticed that they arrived to the apartment complex rather quickly, but chose not to question Kimber's driving ability – or lack of.

After Kimber locked her car, the girls walked up the stairs. Before they reached the door, Ginny realized a dilemma they were about to face. "I think Remy thinks that you and I were picking them up from the airport."

"We never implied it though. For all she knows, they're taking a taxi," Kimber replied, heading towards the door.

"But with all of my stuff?"

"Okay, how much stuff do you actually have?" Kimber said with a laugh.

"A few boxes. I mean, four people are coming, so that's like, one box per person. And then add two or three."

"Okay, we'll have them apparate – that's what they're doing right? – to the community laundry room, as long as no one is there. And somehow pack the boxes into my car and make it seem like we picked them up from the airport. It shouldn't be too hard to do," Kimber said, with a satisfied smile at her plan.

"How the bloody hell do you think so quickly?" Ginny asked in amazement.

"One of my many talents," Kimber said with a wink before retreating downstairs. Ginny followed, taking out her phone.

"So, uh, how do you call people back?" Ginny asked.

"Hit the green button twice, since he was the last person to call you," Kimber replied. The girls had reached the empty community laundry room. Kimber told Ginny that'd she'd wait outside to keep a look out.

"Hey Harry. Do you have the map of the apartment complex?" Ginny asked.

"Yeah. Where should we apparate?" he asked.

"The community laundry room, between the 'A' and 'B' apartments," Ginny replied.

"Okay, thanks. We don't want to get splinched by our uncertainty of the area!" Harry said with a laugh.

"That's so gross, Harry Potter!" Ginny exclaimed.

"Did he say something dirty?" Kimber called from outside.

"No, he just mentioned splinching," Ginny said with a shudder. She heard Kimber scoff at the thought. "Okay, see you…" Ginny didn't have time to finish because Harry apparated before Ginny's eyes. She let out a squeal and attacked him with a rather large hug.

"Merlin, Gin, it's only been two days," Harry said, dropping the box he was carrying to hug her back.

"I know! Where's everyone else?" Ginny asked.

"Making sure I didn't lose a body part on the way," Harry said. After that statement, Ginny saw Ron, George, and Hermione apparate in with boxes in tow. Once again, Ginny squealed and equally attacked them.

"Aiight, I heard four pops, let's "

"– make like a whore and shimmy out of here?" Ginny finished for Kimber.

"Actually, I want going to come up with another example, but sure," Kimber replied.

Ginny grabbed the top box of two that Ron was carrying, and Kimber followed the suit by helping George. They all followed Kimber out to her car, where she received a gasp of approval from Harry.

"Is that a –" Harry was cut off by George.

"– BMW 650i convertible?"

"Yeah?" Kimber replied, acting as if it wasn't a big deal.

"That must've cost you, wow, too many thousands of dollars," Harry said.

"My dad got it for me for my high school graduation," Kimber said, "I'm kind of a 'trust fund' baby, technically. But I hate that term. I'm spoiled, I know it, and I'm not a bitch about it. So can ya'll just get over it, please?" she said with a pleading look.

The boys nodded as she popped the trunk. They fit two of the boxes into the trunk and took the rest to be carried up the apartment. Ginny unlocked the door to find, once again, Draco Malfoy in the living room.

"Fuckin-A, Draco. Don't you know how to call a gal?" Kimber asked, pushing her way through.

Draco smirked and with a nod, said, "Hey, Weasel clan, Potter, Granger."

"Malfoy, what the bloody hell are you doing here?" Harry asked, angrily.

"No yelling and screaming again. I've had enough in the past 24 hours," Kimber said with a glance at Draco and Ginny. "Where's Christopher?"

"He's with my mother at the hotel, chill out. You forgot to pack that teddy bear we made him last weekend. He damn near threw a bitch fit about it in the middle of the night last night," Draco said.

"Who's Christopher?" Ron asked. Hermione shifted the box's weight to one arm, while using the opposite hand to smack Ron.

"C'mon guys, lets put these damn things down and give them some privacy," Ginny said, showing them to the bedroom.

"Gin, what is Malfoy doing in your apartment?" Harry asked.

"Friend of Kimber's. Father of her child. Lets unpack, shall we?"

The boys sputtered at her second comment. "Child?!"

"Guys, it's not our business," Hermione said.

"Thank you, whoever you are. It seems I _did_ forget the teddy bear," Kimber said, walking in and out within ten seconds. She came back a few minutes later with the box she originally carried in.

"So, to unpack everything now or to lunch?" Ginny asked. Ron's stomach's growl answered the question.

"Back to the car?" Kimber asked.

"I guess," Ginny said, "Where should we go?"

"The closest place with food," Ron said, advancing the quickest to the door.

"Where's Remy?" Kimber asked, heading over to Remy's side of the apartment. Unlike the rude-awakening knock, Kimber knocked on her door gently. Remy opened it, fully dressed and wide-awake.

"Ginny's brothers and friends just arrived. We're gonna go get lunch. Do you want to come with?"

"Sure," Remy said, grabbing her purse and coming out of the hallway with Kimber.

"So how are we going to fit everyone in your car?" George asked Kimber.

"You," Kimber pointed at George, "Are sitting up front. You and you," she pointed at Ron and Harry, "Are sitting on the ends. You and you," she pointed at Hermione and Remy, "Are sitting between them. Ginny will sit on someone's lap. We'll just keep the top up and praise whomever you worship for tinted windows."

The group of seven retreated to Kimber's small car and squished in the order Kimber told them. After a lot of arguing, Hermione's idea of finding a sushi bar or Chinese buffet got the majority vote.

&&&&

Lunch was an amusing experience for all of them. Hermione tried to teach Ron how to use chopsticks, until Ron gave up and used his fingers for his sushi. George didn't even try and used his fork to stab the food. He was challenged by Kimber's crazy idea of eating the ginger pieces plan, and against the table's better judgment; he tossed a piece in his mouth. "Not too bad," George said, before grabbing the nearest water glass and gulped it down.

Kimber gave him a smirk and took one of her ginger pieces and placed it her bowl of soy sauce before placing it in her mouth. She smiled after she swallowed and said, "It helps the burn."

After their meal, they sat around and chatted, while making a food tower of the leftovers. They were eventually asked to leave due to their loudness and poor mannerisms. They laughed and paid their respective tabs before leaving, but not before each grabbing a fortune cookie.

Hermione cracked hers open first and read, "'Embrace change, don't battle it.'"

Remy followed the suit and read, "'Love is on its way…' Oh, pray tell, oh wise fortune cookie, who is it going to be?"

Harry opened his and read, "'You're filled with a sense of urgency. Be patient or you may end up confused.'"

Hermione helped the inept Ron open his, and he read, "'You don't wonton know.' What?!"

"Aww, ickle Won-Won," Ginny said, pinching Ron's cheek.

Ginny's read, "'Believe in your abilities, confidence will lead you on.' That's a good confidence-booster for the stressed out college student."

Kimber's read, "'Ideas are like your children' – oh thanks, fortune cookie, 'there are none so wonderful as your own.'"

George's read, "'Ignore previous cookie.' Uh, thank you?"

They all laughed at the insightful and not-so insightful fortune cookies they had received. Lunch was definitely a successful bonding session for the strangers to the larger group. On the car ride home, Harry, Hermione, and Remy talked about books and politics – Remy was a political science major – while Ron tried to get Ginny to explain Draco Malfoy, and Kimber and George were talking about Muggle music.

* * *

Author's Note: I just needed to finish the chapter, so I can devote an entire chapter to Ginny's first day of college. I told you it'd be up by Friday! Woo! Thank you to my reviewers, I really appreciate. It's such a confidence booster. I hope Chapter Three will be up by Sunday. Spring Break starts at 1:15pm (Eastern time), and I have loads of catching up to do with my friends, or else it'd probably be up sooner. I have ideas, ideas, ideas!

**You know what to do!**


	3. See You Again

About The South

By: once a whore

Chapter Three: See You Again

Author's Note: I love each and every one of you who comment and add my story to your Story Alert. Just so you know. If you caught it in the previous chapter, FSU Florida State University. Yay!

I apologize for posting this later than I said I would. During the day my mom thinks I'm like, Super Woman, and can do everything while she's at work. Then I see my friends at night. I only get to write a little bit each day. I'm sorry.

Disclaimer: Not mine. Bummer, I know

* * *

(Sunday, nighttime)

Ginny was in the bathroom brushing her teeth, getting ready for bed, when she heard a loud 'POP!' come from the living room. She rolled her eyes and poked her head out of the door to see who apparated in. She expected it to be one of Malfoy's unexpected visits, but she instead she saw a blur of brown come toward her.

"Gin! I need you to tell me one thing before I do something drastic: Are you and Harry together or not?" Hermione asked, breathless.

Ginny spit out the last of her toothpaste residue and laughed, "I don't think we are, as far as I'm aware. I'm sure he thinks of me as his little sister or something."

Hermione caught her breath and put her hand to her chest, "Thank Merlin."

"Why?" Ginny asked, "What was this drastic thing you were going to do?"

Hermione cleared her throat and turned red. "Ahem. Umm, castrate him?" Hermione knew she was going to have to explain her reasoning when she saw Ginny's confused look. "I accidentally let myself into his and Ron's apartment without telling them – just to pick up a DVD he borrowed – and I walked into the living room to see him with a girl."

"Harry goes on dates all the time. It's not like I haven't been on a few dates since we broke up _five years ago_ or anything," Ginny replied.

"Okay, when I said with, I meant 'with' as in shagging," Hermione said.

"Oh," Ginny blinked, "Well that's awkward. But seriously, Herm, we're better off as friends. Would I have liked it to work out? I sure as hell do. But there's nothing I can do now. The past is the past, and we just need to move on and get over the fact that we're not meant to be."

"You're taking this quite well," Hermione said suspiciously.

"Well, you don't expect me to still be in love with him after five years, do you?" Ginny asked, "I guess you do. Well, I'm not. He was more like a friend with benefits, until we decided to keep things friendly and maybe a little affectionate. It's complicated."

"Alright, whatever you say. I just wanted to tell you, in case you were. I'll go slam my head into a wall now," Hermione said, looking very embarrassed.

"Please don't. I would like my best friend not to have a concussion, thanks," Ginny said.

Hermione laughed, and then said, "Well, I better get going. It's quite late in London. I always forget about the time difference. It's your first day of classes tomorrow?" Ginny nodded affirmatively. "Well, good luck. Eat breakfast in the morning and don't forget your textbooks and a pencil."

"Yes, Mummy Hermione!" Ginny said. The girls hugged and Hermione apparated out of the apartment.

Kimber walked seconds later and asked, "What the fucking-a was that?!"

"Hermione though Harry was cheating on me or something. I told her we weren't dating anymore, so he can shag whomever he wants," Ginny replied.

"Oh, alrighty then. I was just curious as to when you had class tomorrow."

Ginny walked out of the bathroom to their room to find the sheet of paper Kimber helped print so she could have a hard copy of her schedule. "I have Introduction to Sociology at 10am, Multicultural Humanities at 11:15am, and Statistics Through Example at 1:15pm."

"Okay, cool. Would you like a ride to school in the morning? I have a 10am class as well," Kimber asked.

"Sure, thanks. I have a question," Ginny blushed, "Do all college classes sound as hard as mine do?"

"Yeah, they do. In high school, I took a lot of college classes, so I'm already taking 2000 and 3000 level courses. This is not going to be a fun semester, I can tell you that!" Kimber replied.

"What are you taking?" Ginny asked.

Kimber shuffled through the papers on her desk before finding her printed-out schedule, "Introduction to Criminal Justice, Intermediate French Grammar and Composition, Honors Shakespeare, Physics of Light and Sound, and United States Since 1945."

"Wow. So I guess mine doesn't sound as bad?" Ginny thought out loud.

"Just wait until you have to take General Biology, Chemistry, Microbiology, and other science shit. I'll be laughing at you."

"Lets not, 'kay?" Ginny said with a laugh.

"What are your Tuesday-Thursday classes?" Kimber asked.

"Anatomy and Physiology I and United States Since 1945," Ginny replied.

"Dude. At 12:30pm?" Kimber asked. _Man, that girl is nosey_.

"Yeah. Are we in the same class?"

"Hells to the yes!"

"You are so weird, I hope you know that," Ginny stated.

Kimber rolled her eyes and crawled into bed. "See you in the morning."

"Goodnight."

break

(Monday, morning)

Ginny woke up to the smell of something cooking. She glanced at her clock, which read 8:45am. 'I'm getting really sick of this time,' Ginny thought to herself.

She threw her robe over her small tank top and shorts and walked into the kitchen. Ginny stared at the sight in front of her. A tall girl with short blonde hair was standing in front of the stove cooking French toast.

"Who the hell are you?" Remy asked, walking into the kitchen fully dressed, but with a towel on her head.

The girl turned around and smiled, "Hi, I'm Miley."

"Oh. When did you get here?" Ginny said.

"Oh my God! I love your accent!" Ginny frowned. "I got here early this morning. I figured I'd come later and let you guys move in since I don't have classes on Mondays," Miley replied.

"What the fuck is going on here?" Kimber asked, walking into the kitchen in a towel with her dark hair curling down her back.

"Miley moved in," Remy murmured as she walked out of the kitchen.

"Oh, hi. Nice to meet you," Kimber said, extending her right hand, holding the towel with her left hand.

Miley took her hand, "You too. And you are?"

"Kimber. This is Ginny," Kimber motioned her thumb towards Ginny.

"Remy, will be your roommate," Ginny added.

"That's cool. Would either of you like some French toast?" Miley asked.

Kimber furrowed her eyebrows and declined, explaining something about not eating dairy products. Ginny smiled and gladly accepted.

After eating some of Miley's French toast, Ginny thanked her and ran to the bathroom to take a quick shower. When she got out, Kimber handed her a Starbucks cup from a tray.

"Thanks," Ginny said, taking the cup and retreating to their shared room.

"Have you seen that Miley girl? I got her coffee and now she's nowhere to be seen," Kimber explained.

"No…I clearly just got out of the shower," Ginny replied.

"Aww, you're starting to sound like me," Kimber said sarcastically, "She's kinda sketch, you know? Appearing out of nowhere, then disappearing within the fifteen minutes I was gone."

"Maybe she's a witch," Ginny mused, awkwardly changing in her towel since Kimber followed her.

"Quite possibly. We should investigate after classes," Kimber said.

"Okay Nancy Holmes," Ginny said, then stopping to figure out if she said that right.

"You mean Nancy Drew or Sherlock Holmes?" Kimber asked, laughing.

"Nancy Drew!" Ginny said, joining in the laughter.

"Okay George Fayne, get dressed. We're leaving in fifteen minutes," Kimber said, walking out of the room. "REMMMYYYY!" Ginny heard Kimber scream. Ginny shook her head, smiled, and rolled her eyes.

Ginny cast a simple hair drying charm on her before yelling; "I'm ready whenever you are!"

Kimber showed up at the bedroom door with Remy, who looked miserable to be in Kimber's caffeinated presence.

"Do you have class, Remy?" Ginny asked as they walked towards the front door.

"Unfortunately. And _someone_ won't let me miss it," she added with a glare at Kimber.

"Dude, it's the first day of classes. You can't be skipping already. Give it two weeks or so," Kimber replied.

The Florida State University campus was huge, Ginny observed. There were many buildings surrounding her, and the hustle and bustle of students and professors was unnerving. She had no idea of which direction to go towards. She turned to her left and stopped to ask a passing professor, "Excuse me, but do you know where Bellamy Building is?"

"Yes, you go past…" Ginny listened intently to his directions and followed them as well as she could. "Room 0210…" she murmured to herself. As soon as she found the room, so peered in. It was a large lecture hall, with about 100 students filling up the seats. Her eyes widened at the amount of students in the room. A student pushed past her to get inside and Ginny followed.

At 10 o'clock on the dot, the professor walked in and started, "I am Professor Simon. This is Sociology 1000, Introduction to Society. This class will be an introduction to the fundamentals of sociology, with a focus on the basic findings of empirical research studies in a wide range of areas traditionally examined by sociologists. Now, if you're in the wrong class, get out now." No one moved. "Alright. I'm predicting that two months from now about one-third of you will be gone."

Professor Simon took attendance, ending with Ginny. The syllabus was handed out and the class was ordered to read Chapters One and Two in their textbooks for homework. Fifteen minutes later, after reading the syllabus to the class, Professor Simon let them out, but warned them not to expect that to happen again.

Ginny sighed, as she sat down on a bench outside of the classroom. Her phone went off, beeping uncontrollably. Flipping the phone up like an expert now, she realized it was what Kimber called a 'text message.' And speaking of Kimber, that's who the text was from. Ginny read, "I'm out of class. Are you?" Ginny laughed at what Remy called Kimber's 'inability to use incorrect spelling and grammar in a text message.'

With a reply Ginny wrote back, "I just got out. In Bellamy, you?" Within two minutes after sending the text, Ginny received a phone call from Kimber.

"I'm way too lazy to text back," she began, "Where in Bellamy are you? My class was in the basement, but I just got to the first floor."

"I'm on the second floor. Meet you in front of the building outside? I think I saw a pastry and coffee cart out there," Ginny replied.

"That would be amazing! See you in a few," Kimber said before hanging up.

Ginny picked up her messenger bag that carried her currently useless textbooks and headed towards the stairs. Moments later, she made her way outside and saw Kimber at the coffee cart.

"A large regular coffee with soy milk please," Kimber said to the barista.

"So what number cup is this today?" Ginny asked, after walking over to Kimber.

"Only two, shockingly. I'm sure my body's going through withdrawal," Kimber replied.

Once their orders were taken care of, the girls found a shady spot under a tree to enjoy their beverages.

"So how was your first class?" Kimber asked.

"Pretty good. The class was huge. There's like, a hundred students in it and the professor seems kind of tough," Ginny replied.

"Ooh, lecture hall. Bummer. I've decided to drop my Intro to CRJ. It's a pain in my ass," Kimber said.

"Already? How so?"

"The professor is like, the softball coach as well. And there were a bunch of softball girls in the class. I wanted to strangle them. I seriously think they just wanted an easy A. And the professor clearly favors them."

"That's annoying. What do you want to do while we wait?"

"Hex my Intro to CRJ professor or my French textbook!" Kimber replied eagerly.

"No that's okay. What's wrong with your French textbook?" Ginny asked.

"Have you seen the size of the damn thing?!" Kimber pulled out a textbook that was about two and half to three inches thick, with the French language written all over it.

"Okay, no hexing it, but I do agree that it's pretty terrible," Ginny sympathized. "Why are you taking it?"

"To fulfill my minor. My advisor figured that I should be bi-lingual. But she doesn't know that I already am, so I thought I'd go back to the language I took in high school," Kimber explained.

"Wow. What else do you speak, Miss Overachiever?" Ginny asked.

"Other than English and French? I can speak fluent Russian, because my paternal grandmother lives in Russia and I visit her frequently. But if you ask me to write you, even a sentence in Russian, I wouldn't be able to do it. I can also speak basic Spanish."

"That's amazing."

For the next 45 minutes, the girls talked about their lives, in the most Muggle way possible, due to crowds of students passing by their shady spot. By the time eleven o'clock rolled around, Kimber was complaining about going to French and Ginny was thinking about what her Multicultural Humanities class was going to be like.

After the promise of meeting up for lunch, the girls parted ways. Ginny walked back into Bellamy to find her class. Once finding the classroom, Ginny let out a sigh of relief that this class wasn't as big as her first one. There were about thirty seats in the classroom and only ten of them were taken.

Ginny chose a seat near the front and closest to the door. She sat behind a girl who turned around automatically and introduced herself as Kelly Nash. Ginny nodded and replied with her name.

"Oh-Em-Gee! Are you British?!" she shrieked.

"Yeah, I am," Ginny said, raising an eyebrow at her reaction.

"Ahem," came a voice from Kelly's turned back. Apparently the professor had arrived. Ginny looked up and saw Draco Malfoy staring at the two girls.

Ginny's eyes widened, "Are you kidding me?" she said a little too loudly.

"Unfortunately, I'm not, Weasley," Draco turned his attention to the class, "I will be your substitute for the next month. Professor Johnson will be back one month from today from her maternity leave. My name is Draco Malfoy, you can call me whatever you want – Mr. Malfoy, Draco, hey you! – whatever. I don't really have a plan for today's lecture. So I'll take attendance and hand out the syllabus and dismiss you."

After the typical first day of class ritual, the class filed out of the room, but Ginny stayed back.

"What are you doing here?" she asked bluntly.

Draco blinked. "Student teaching or something?"

"You, what?" Ginny stuttered, "Why do you keep showing up in my life? And how…do you even have a teaching degree?"

"The answer to your first question is that I'm irresistible," Ginny rolled her eyes, "And secondly, I don't technically have a degree, but Professor Johnson is a friend of the Zabini's, and knew I studied Humanities and Sociology at WVU."

"What's WVU?" Ginny asked.

"According to Muggles, it's West Virginia University. But it's really it stands of Wizarding Valor University."

Ginny rolled her eyes again, "Figures. I have to go, Malfoy. I'm having lunch with Kimber during our break. See you later – we always seem to run into each other."

"Would you like some company while you wait?" he asked quietly.

Ginny blinked and let the question register in her head, "Sure. We're meeting at the coffee cart, then probably going off campus. You should come with us."

As they were heading out of room Draco stopped and turned to Ginny, "How many cups of coffee has Kimber had today?

"As far as I'm aware, only two," Ginny replied.

"Good. That girl needs to lay off of the caffeine." They laughed and started to walk down the stairs and into the foyer. Once outside, they chose a bench that was exposed to the warm sun.

"So how is your first day going?" Draco asked after a minute of silence.

"Why are you being nice to me right now?" Ginny asked at the same time.

"You first," Draco said.

"Easy. My classes have been only fifteen minutes long each so far. Your turn."

Draco took a deep breath, "Because I want to. Honestly. I don't want people to see me as I was at Hogwarts. I've changed. I have a kid, a job, and a life outside of my father's control. I don't want people to look at me and see my father, I want them to see me as me."

"Well…understandable. That's another thing no one will tell me. A child?! How could you go to Hogwarts thousands of miles away from a KID?" Ginny asked, surprised at her own bluntness and honesty.

"Well, at first I didn't know about that whole pregnancy thing. We don't talk about the incident that lead to it, but it was probably the best thing that could have ever happened to us. For Kimber, because she's been the rebel child ever since I can remember – if she hadn't gotten pregnant, she would probably be in rehab."

"But she was only thirteen right?" Ginny asked, immersed in the story.

"_Only_ thirteen? At that age, Kimber had the maturity level of a twenty-year old. The girl could shoot any type of hard liquor thrown at her, smoke any cancer-causing, drugged up blunt passed to her, and if Blaise and I hadn't stopped her, she probably would've done some hardcore Muggle disease-causing drugs."

"But…I don't understand. How did you guys get access to stuff like that? Because you had 'connections' or whatever you'd call them?"

"Bingo. Because of our social status, we could get what we want, whenever we wanted. Have you heard of rich Muggle kids have pill parties?" Ginny nodded. "That was a small group of us, but include the stronger Wizarding alcohol and other drugs."

"She seems so bubbly and happy," Ginny said.

"Everyone has their dark days."

"So what about you?" Ginny asked, seeing how far she could pry.

"What about me?" Draco asked.

"You said that have a kid was the best thing that could've happened to both of you. You didn't say why it was for you," Ginny explained.

"Oh. Well, once I found out, I cut back on the rebellion over breaks to try to visit. But her mum hated me at that point, so I'd only get to see her and Chris when she visited her grandmother in the summers."

"Did you guys ever try to actually be a couple or anything?"

"No. She's my best friend and we decided it would be too weird. Anything else, Miss I'm-Going-To-See-How-Far-I-Can-Pry?" Draco asked with a smirk.

"Yes. But you don't talk about it, so no!" Ginny said, at the same time pondering about what Draco told her. It was interesting to learn this new information about her new roommate and former enemy.

"Draco! I forgot you were 'student teaching' or whatever the hell you're doing here. Hey Gin. I'm surprised I don't see wands drawn," Kimber said, approaching them with a Red Bull can in her hand.

Draco took the Red Bull out her hand and poured it out on the grass next to them, "You've had enough caffeine for the next, oh, twenty years or so." Kimber stuttered in her protest as she stared at the carbonated puddle on the grass.

"I hate you, you jerk," Kimber said, pouting.

"No you don't. You'll thank me when you can get a decent night's sleep," Draco said, standing up. Ginny picked up her messenger bag and followed the suit.

"Lunch?" Kimber asked Ginny.

"Sure," Ginny said, looking at Draco.

"I'll probably see you both later. I have some lesson planning to do before Chris gets out of his tutoring lesson," Draco said, giving Kimber a kiss on the cheek and waving to Ginny.

"I have the right mind right now to kill you for telling me that we should home school him," Kimber called to his retreating back.

"Oh, but you won't when he starts controlling his magical ability and discovers that he can turn his teacher's hair blue," Draco said, before walking towards an apparation point for the small wizarding community.

break

After a quick lunch with Kimber, Ginny was dropped back off at the school's campus for her 1:15 Statistics class. Kimber promised Ginny she'd be back in a half hour after a quick grocery-shopping trip.

Ginny found herself in front of Carothers Hall, where her class was going to be held, without the help from a faculty member or student this time. She walked into the building's foyer, looking around for a sign that pointed her to the classroom.

Almost right away, Ginny found the classroom. There were tables in rows with office chairs facing a white board. Ginny was the first person in the room. She took out her cell phone, which she was getting quickly adjusted to, and attempted to make a new text message to text Remy. She wanted to see how it was with Miley in the apartment.

A few minutes later, students piled in and Professor Ramirez started his class lecture. After the 50-minute lecture, the students were finally released. Many of them were cursing the professor for keeping them the entire class period, but Ginny didn't mind. She always loved learning new things and receiving new challenges.

Waiting outside of Carothers Hall was Kimber in her car, with the music blasting. Ginny took her seat on the passenger side and the girls drove off towards their apartment.

* * *

Author's Note: So I actually finished this on Easter, but I knew it needed some editing (and it probably still does). But I wanted to post this so I wouldn't seem like a total douche for posting almost TWO WEEKS later than I said I would. I really do apologize. Next chapter: Halloween. Oh yeah!


	4. This Is Halloween

About The South

By: once a whore

Chapter Four: This Is Halloween

Author's Note: Love-love-love to my reviewers and the positive feedback. If I could, I'd give each of you a hug.

Disclaimer: Go die.

(Should I **warn** ya'll that this chapter contains drinking? Hey, you see the 'T' rating!)

* * *

(October 30, 2006)

The rest of August, September, and most of October passed without much change. The four girls had settled into a routine of daily coffee and tea, shared chores, an occasional outing, and…well, insanity.

In the two months of living together, they had all learned each other's quirks, likes, and dislikes. For instance, Miley was a control-freak. She was the one who had them settled into a daily routine. And she had a slight (okay, not slight) case of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Remy was the "messy one." While she cleaned up in the public places of their apartment, her side of the room looked like a war between her shoes, schoolbooks, and clothes has broken out. Kimber was the one who would argue with Miley for the other girls and herself – when she wasn't doing homework or taking care of Christopher. She was also one hell of a cook if she put her wasted, caffeinated energy into it. Ginny, usually quiet, had become more vocal, but still non-confrontational. She had resorted to asking Draco to tutor her when Professor Johnson came back that unfortunate day in September.

_Draco laughed, "Tutor you?"_

"_C'mon. She's such a hard-ass and those bimonthly thousand-word essays? I'm not going to pass the class without a little extra help. So why not ask someone who _knows_ the damn subject?" Ginny inquired._

"_I'll do it on one condition," Draco said slowly._

"_And what is that?" Ginny asked, putting her hands on her hips. She quickly realized she looked like her mother and decided to cross her arms over her chest instead._

"_Actually, I'll tell you later," he said with that annoying smirk. Ginny rolled her eyes and walked out of the room._

"Miley, you have _got_ to be kidding me!" Kimber screamed from the kitchen. Ginny wandered in, automatically wishing she hadn't. Kimber had a spatula in her hand, while Miley had a slab of packaged chicken in her hand. Bad idea.

"Come on, Kimber. I'm not the best of cooks, and you're amazing. Why won't you just cook it for me?" Miley begged.

"Because you know I'm a fucking vegetarian and I absolutely _refuse_ to even touch that...that…thing!" Kimber said, a little more composed, but her tan face pink with anger.

"But I really want grilled chicken and I don't want to mess it up," Miley said, resorting to whining the last few syllables.

Ginny piped up, "Why don't you use Remy's George Foreman grill. I've never used it, but it looks pretty easy."

Kimber shot a glare at Miley and went back to cooking her lunch. Ginny cleared her throat and walked out of the tense kitchen. She passed Remy in the living room and said; "Don't go in there if you know what's good for you."

Remy rolled her eyes, "Let me guess, something to do with Kimber's opposition to meat and Miley's inability to cook anything that isn't breakfast food?"

"Exactly," Ginny said.

Miley skipped out of the kitchen into Ginny and Kimber's shared room. "Guess what?" she said happily.

"You got Remy to make the chicken for you?" Ginny said, not looking up from her laptop.

"Yep! So what are you doing for Halloween?" Miley asked, sitting on Ginny's bed.

"I don't know. Kimber mentioned something about me bringing my brother, since he's coming tonight, and we go trick-or-treating with her, Chris, and Draco," Ginny explained.

"Well after that, how about the big kids go to a Kappa Alpha Tau party?" Miley suggested.

"A what?" Ginny asked, confused.

"Kappa Alpha Tau. They're one of the fraternities on campus. It'll be so much fun! My sisters will be there, and a bunch of other people from the frats and sororities on campus."

"Sure, sounds good," Ginny said offhandedly, still typing away.

"You do know that it's Halloween?" Miley asked.

"Yeah, yeah."

"Okay. That means you'll need a costume," Miley said, with a smile.

"Wait, what are we talking about?" Ginny asked, looking up for the first time since she sat down at her laptop.

"Halloween. Kappa Alpha Tau. Costumes," Miley refreshed.

"Oh, right. What should I wear?" Ginny asked.

"A costume. Are you not paying attention?" Miley asked, looking a little annoyed.

"I don't get it. Why do I need to dress up?" Ginny asked.

"Want me to handle this?" Kimber asked from the doorframe, looking highly amused.

"Yes, please!" Miley said with a dramatic, exasperated sigh.

"Okay, Gin," Kimber said, closing the door after Miley, "Halloween in the world of Muggles is a concept where children dress up and go door-to-door asking for free candy. In the world of us college students, it's just another chance where girls can dress up like sluts and guys can be sleazy. It's also another excuse to just drink."

"That never happened at Hogwarts," Ginny said, "We had dances and balls, but none of that dressing up like sluts thing."

"I know, I know. But you're now in an area where the majority of people are Muggles," Kimber said, flopping onto Ginny's bed, "So we're gonna do whatever Miley suggested to you after we all go trick-or-treating. You're going to have to wear an appropriate costume for that though," she said with a wink.

"Kimber, I'll be wearing an appropriate costume the entire time. My older brother will be there!" Ginny said.

"Oh yeah, George is coming. Why again?"

"I don't know exactly. Something about looking for a good location for the joke shop," Ginny said, going back to her assignment.

"So why are you doing the history paper now?" Kimber asked.

"Because it's due tomorrow," Ginny said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "Haven't you done yours?"

"Gin. Oh, Gin. It's been done since Sunday night," Kimber said.

Ginny stuttered, "H-H-How?!"

Kimber shrugged, "I just figure out where we are in the syllabus and do the homework early. Plus, that paper was assigned two weeks ago, at least, so of course I knew about it. I just chose to do it NOT at the last minute."

"I hope you know that I hate you," Ginny said.

"No you don't, because if you did, you wouldn't have the most perfect Halloween costume," Kimber said.

"I have the most perfect Halloween costume?" Ginny asked in disbelief.

"Oh yes. It's sexy and appropriate," Kimber said, hoping out of Ginny's bed and running to her closest. She shuffled through dresses until she found it. "AHA!" she cried.

"Found it?" Ginny asked sarcastically.

"Shut up. Close your eyes," Kimber said.

"Okay, but if I end up on some island where the inhabitants have some kind of cannibalistic characteristic, I'm going to kill you," Ginny said.

"Where do you find shit like that?" Kimber asked in disbelief.

"I have no idea, I swear," Ginny said, closing her eyes.

"You're so weird. Now, you don't have to wear this, but if you don't, I'm not gonna help you find a costume," Kimber said.

"Is that a threat?" Ginny asked with her eyes still closed.

"Absolutely. Now open your eyes!"

Ginny opened her eyes and turned around. Hanging from a hanger on a hook was a bright purple flapper dress. The torso area looked like a sequined corset, while the short skirt was in the classic fringe style. Ginny gasped, "It's beautiful! Are you sure you want me to wear it?"

Kimber laughed. "Of course I do! I bought it for a Great Gatsby party that never ended up happening."

Ginny squealed and gave Kimber a hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You're welcome. Try it on first, just incase it needs a little alteration," Kimber said, taking it down from the hook and handing the hanger to Ginny.

Ginny slid into the dress, with help from Kimber. The dress fit her curves perfectly except for the bust area. Kimber laughed at the sight of Ginny's excessive cleavage and said, "I can shrink your boobs if you'd like."

"You're so inappropriate," came a voice from the doorframe. The girls turned around to face George.

Ginny turned her back to her brother and pulled the nearest hoodie over her head. Kimber gave him a nod and said, "Hey what's up?"

"Oh nothing really, I was banging at the door for a good ten minutes before anyone heard me and –"

"That was rhetorical," Kimber said. She turned back to Ginny, who was blushing furiously. "Get out, you're making your sister uncomfortable. We're just finishing up with her Halloween costume."

After George backed out of the room, Ginny took the hoodie off and Kimber quickly altered the bust of the dress. She tossed Ginny a pair of black fishnet stockings and two long strands of pearls. Once Ginny's outfit was safely put together and hung up in her closet, the two girls went into the living room, which was empty. High-pitched laughter came from Miley and Remy's room. Following the laughter, Ginny and Kimber saw Miley, Remy, and George around Miley's computer laughing at the screen. Curious, the two girls stepped further in to see the other three were watching a video on YouTube.

"I don't even want to know," Kimber said, leaving the room. Ginny stayed out of curiosity. Miley had an obsession with this website called YouTube and a thing called video blogging. Apparently they had all costarred in it multiple times.

After watching a hilarious video that involved a guy dressed as a girl named 'Kelly,' babbling about shoes, Ginny decided to drag her brother away and find something else to do.

"But that girl is hilarious," George whined.

"George, you _do_ know that Kelly is actually played by a guy, right?" Ginny asked in disbelief.

George looked shocked for a minute before saying, "Well, good thing I didn't think she was hot."

"Congratulations. Lets do something fun!" Ginny said. She had been antsy all day until her roommates came back from their classes. Her last two classes were canceled for some unknown reason. It gave her time to work on the aforementioned History paper, but she wanted to go out and do something – anything.

The siblings wandered back into Ginny's room and stated her complaint to Kimber. Kimber shook her head and laughed, "You can come with me to get my costume for the frat party."

"What are you going to be?" Ginny asked, "Were you going to be the flapper?! I can be something else."

Kimber shook her head, "No, no, I want you to be the flapper. I think I really want to go as Columbia from _The Rocky Horror Picture Show_. Her or Magenta!"

"You could pull off either," Remy said, walking in.

"Why do people love to surprise us like this?" Kimber asked Ginny before bursting out into a fit of laughter.

"You could turn Magenta's into like, a naughty French-maid costume to make it hotter," Remy said, ignoring her comment.

"For trick-or-treating?" Kimber asked.

"Nahh, I meant the party. I wouldn't suggest it for some child's play."

"What are we, in a 'Chucky' movie?" Kimber asked to no one.

(A/N: This is the part of the movie where the screen turns black for a few moments because the writers got writer's block and decided to move on to the next order of business.)

--

The Kappa Alpha Tau party was insane by the time Ginny, George, Remy, Kimber, and Draco arrived. Remy decided to go trick-or-treating for old time's sake, and proved to be more excited about the free candy than Christopher. Once they had gone around the neighborhood and neighboring apartments, Draco took Christopher to a local babysitter's for the night while the girls sluttified their outfits.

"This is so awkward," Kimber said, pulling at her gold and magenta sequined leotard. She had been convinced to go as Columbia because of her body type.

"Oh hush, you look great," Ginny said.

"I hate you," Kimber replied, itching the elastic band that was holding her silver sequined hat on her head.

"Oh my gawd, you guys made it!" cried Miley as they entered the house. Miley and her pledge sisters were told that they all had to choose a theme for their costumes. According to some "distasteful bitch of a pledge," the theme ended up dressing as dancers from early 1900s Moulin Rouge.

"You look…cute," Ginny said loudly, not being able to find a decent word. Miley was dressed in a ridiculous silver sequin dress that covered just enough, yet left little to the imagination.

"Hey, you guys look similar!" George yelled over the music to Miley and Kimber.

"Bite me," Kimber said before stalking off to the keg. Ginny followed behind her shortly.

Draco, George, and Remy all looked at each other. "Well, this is awkward," Remy said, "Lets find some chicks or dudes."

A few hours later, everyone was decently trashed, to almost the belligerent point. Ginny and Kimber were stumbling around from person to person, giggling their heads off at any comment made. Kimber somehow managed to swipe a fifth of Smirnoff strawberry vodka out of some girl's hand, and was using that as her alcohol source. After working the room, the two girls separated and Ginny ended up having a drunken serious conversation with Draco, while George had somehow gotten Kimber into a corner.

"Ith's nAt that I didna like youuuu at," Ginny hiccupped, "Hogwarts, but you tea-teas- oh fuck it, made fun ov my families, you knew? I mean like, _so_ iry-nick that Kimber and I are roomies and you two _totally_ had thisth kid!"

Remy swooped in to save the day, "I am so sorry about her future behavior. C'mon Gin, lets go to the little girls' room!"

Ginny looked at Remy like she was insane, "Li'l gals room? Why?"

"I'm going to make you sit on a toilet until you piss this alcohol out or throw it up. Now, move it." Remy pointed Ginny towards the stairs that lead up to the second level.

After forty-five minutes of pure acidic burn, Ginny and Remy retreated back to the main level of the party, feeling slightly refreshed and less drunk. The occupants of the party had slightly dispersed in the while that they were in the bathroom.

Miley and Kimber were talking to Draco and George, both sharing the last of the bottle Kimber had earlier.

"…no, and _then_ I was like, 'That's what she said,'" Miley said, apparently finishing a story.

"That made _NO_ sense whatsoever. Were you just trying to tell a stupid 'That's what she said' joke?" Kimber said, rolling her eyes.

"How can you talk so coherently?" Remy asked.

Kimber leaned forward between Ginny and Remy's ears, "When Miley wasn't looking, I filled the bottle up with water." The three girls broke into a loud, obnoxious laughter that had everyone within their vicinity turn around.

"But you were so drunk earlier," Ginny said, after the laughter.

"Okay, one, you need a breath mint, and two, it comes and goes," Kimber said, pretending to float away. After Remy handed Ginny a mint, the three girls found an empty couch to keep talking.

"So, Miss Kimber, I saw Ginny's brother hitting on you earlier. What's up with that?" Remy asked.

"Oh," Kimber said, waving her hand nonchalantly, "We were drunkenly flirting, then he tried to kiss me, so I kicked him in the shins and walked away." After a moment of shocked silence, Ginny and Remy started to laugh hysterically.

"You're insane," Ginny said.

"The shins? Why not go for the family jewels?" Remy asked, still hysterical.

Kimber rolled her eyes, "I wanted to inflict pain, not be the cause of the possible inability to reproduce."

"That won't be a problem," Ginny replied, "I mean, hi, do you know how big my family is?"

Before Kimber had the chance to answer, Miley, George, and Draco slithered over to the couch.

"This party is dying, let's go," Miley demanded. Everyone looked around – Miley was right, the party had died down a lot since their arrival about five hours earlier. Only a select few Greeks from neighboring fraternities, sororities, and the Kappa Alpha Tau brothers were left.

"Lets go get Denny's or something," Remy suggested.

"Why, Miss Jackson, I believe that's the best idea you've had all night," Kimber said in an exaggerated Southern accent.

"Wow, that's one of the first times you've let your accent out," Remy replied. It was known in their apartment that, although Kimber was born and raised Southern belle-esque, she could pull off an amazing neutral accent, which she used in every day speak.

Remy got up from the couch and followed Miley out the door. The two girls turned around before exiting motioning the foursome to follow them. Ginny motioned for them to leave without them – they'd catch up eventually.

"Apparate?" Draco asked.

"What about splinching?" Kimber asked, making a motion that tried to resemble a drunken state.

"Oh come on, I'm sure we've all endured worse. I mean, I know I've made the mistake of mixing Firewhiskey with Jägermeister," George shuddered at that memory.

"Jäger is a Muggle alcoholic liquor –" Kimber started.

"Mix it with Firewhiskey, and it could probably be fatal," George said.

"Damn. So what are we gonna do? Walk to Denny's or apparate?" Ginny asked, looking a little impatient.

"Oh gee, I have to run to the loo. Care to accompany me, Kimber?" George said loudly, offering his arm to Kimber. Kimber stood up from the couch and dramatically took his arm. Ginny and Draco watched them go up the stairs and listened for a faint 'POP!' over the bass of the music.

"Hey, Weasley, wait a sec. What were you trying to explain to me earlier?" Draco asked, before Ginny could apparate away from the awkward air surrounding them.

"Uh, it was nothing, really. I was a lot drunker at the time. And, uh, you know…alcohol makes you babble on about anything and everything," Ginny attempted to explain.

"Oh, okay. Well, it was kinda cute," Draco said, leaning forward and kissing her on the cheek.

Ginny squeaked and blushed ferociously before turning and running for a private area where she could apparate.

* * *

Author's Note: Hi guys, I know it's been a while. Honestly, I _just_ finished this. Yeah, it took me three weeks to write this. I feel like shit. I'm sure I would've gotten a lot more done, but this past week was my sister's Spring Break. So she decided to visit me. Then my boyfriend visited me this weekend. It was all very hectic. So here I am, apologizing profusely on my knees. I promise.

On another note, I'm thinking about starting another fic. It's going to be following the newest season of ABC Family's show "GR∑∑K." But I'm gonna wait until I get into this story more.

ONLY 3 WEEKS OF SCHOOL LEFT! (-:


End file.
